Stained with Scarlet
by hazelleKAT
Summary: After a horrible accident, Erza wakes up in a hospital, no memories to tell her why and how she got here. With many new struggles, she must decide if life is truly worth living if it's not in your own body. Why won't the doctors tell her anything, and who is this mysterious man with blue hair that refuses to leave her bedside? My first fanfic. Please R&R
1. Chapter 1

Stained with Scarlet

Chapter 1

_Beep... Beep... Beep..._

Before her sight was with her, she heard this noise. It was unnervingly close, as well as annoying. She wanted to move to turn it off. _I didn't think I set an alarm this morning._ The thought wasn't surprising though. _It's not like the Bureau isn't stressful lately._ Just the thought of that place made her head hurt.

She tried to move her arm towards the noise, her eyes still shut. But to her astonishment, nothing happened. She still felt her arms at her side, her back aching against the age of her mattress. The only thing she did notice was a groan escaping her own lips; a wave of immense pain soon following behind.

"Did you hear that?" A man's voice questioned from the opposite end of the beeping alarm clock. "I think she's awake." _Who the _hell_ is in my room? _This mysterious voice motivated her to move again. She wanted to open her eyes, to see this man as she kicked his teeth in for breaking and entering.

She made an attempt, albeit a wrong one, to move her right arm since her eyes felt so heavy. _Why is that?_ Her efforts were all for nothing, for as soon as she tried to move a single finger, she was filled with an electric pain running up her arm and down her spine. Her arm felt so _heavy; _almost as if it were made out of lead.

Another set of beeps from her left side, much faster in pace, could be heard. This time a female voice traveled to her ears. "Judging by her heart rate, I believe you're right." _What on earth is going on?_ Her mind started racing, causing the incessant beeping to quicken. "Oh dear, she's excited." the female voice exclaimed. "I believe it's time we let her open her eyes."

The soft clicking of heels moved closer to her, shadows floating around like waves in front of her sealed eyelids. Switches were being flipped as the hissing of pressurized air escaped from all around her. She didn't realize the strain she put on her eyes until they opened with an abruptness that startled even herself. "Ah!" The noise escaped her lips just like the groan did before.

Obviously she wasn't in her room. She knew that now. The beeping came from an innumerable amount of machines surrounding the top of the bed she was plastered to. She could see them through her peripheral vision, but her eyes were boring into the paneled ceiling above. She was in a _hospital._

"Erza, how are you feeling?" Her eyes darted towards the mention of her name. It was the man's voice again. He was seated in an old wooden chair next to her bed. She scanned up, from the dark jeans, to the burgundy dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, to the badge clipped to his left breast pocket. It had the Bureau's insignia on it. _Do I know this man? _Her eyes moved higher, examining his face. There were blue locks of hair covering his eyes, and a streak of scarlet on the left side of his face. She must have been seeing things, because it looked like his head was _bleeding. That's absurd. We're in a hospital._ He would have gotten help if there were blood streaming down his face.

She squinted, now interested in what was _really _on his face. After several seconds, she concluded that her eyesight was truly pitiful. Focusing back on the man beside her, she realized she had been staring this whole time. She tried to muster up an apology, but her throat was so hoarse that only a groan was released. _Is that the only noise I can make?_

"Erza, dear. Please don't try to talk right now. Your body is still in shock from the surgeries." The woman's voice changed her focus. _Right. He's not the only one here._

_Wait, what?!_ The woman's, or rather the nurse's words hit her like a slap in the face. _Surgeries?_ Not even singular, but multiple surgeries?! _What has happened to me?_ She lost control then. Forcing herself to move, she ignored the immense amount of pain from every cell in her body. The beeping next to her, her _heart monitor,_ dangerously increased it's speed. She didn't care.

Her body focused on pushing out of the hospital bed, but as her head tilted to the side from her straining, she caught a glimpse of something silver and shining. _Metal_. It was on her shoulder. Her eyes spanned downward, and the sight only got worse. Her arm was covered in this metal; holes shown every so often revealing a mechanism inside her arm. There were _tubes_ in her arm. Her eyes went wide. _No. What is this? Is that my arm?_ Her eyes must be deceiving her. This had to be a dream.

"Erza," The man was clutching her hand. No, it wasn't _her _hand. It was that metal _thing_. It didn't belong to her. "Erza, calm down. It's alright. Don't be afraid." His face hovered in her line of vision. She could see it clearly now. This mysterious man with a _tattoo_ over the right side of his face was trying to comfort her. He didn't seem nearly as concerned about her arm as she was. She noticed then the puffiness of his brown eyes. They were bloodshot as well. Almost as if he had been _crying._

Just then, the nurse shoved a needle in her arm, and her eyes were closed once more.

_Who is that man?_

* * *

><p><em>Ow, ow, ow, that hurts. My chest- no, my neck. It hurts. Really, everything hurts, but my neck, it hurts more. <em>

Scarlet. The color of blood.

_Pain. But I can't move. I can't do anything about it. Why? _

You have forgotten.

_I don't remember. Why am I here? How did I get here?_

_He_ can tell you. The one with scars. He knows.

_Get me out of here. I don't want to feel this anymore..._

* * *

><p>Her eyes flew open. What had happened? <em>A man with scars. Her <em>neck. The pain was still there, residual from the... the _surgeries._ Her brain hurt from thinking about it. It had been two days since she first opened her eyes, and the numerous doctors and nurses observing told her nothing. _He_ didn't say a word either. This man,_ Jellal_, she had heard someone call him, he stayed with her the entire time. He'd occasionally asked her how she felt, and she'd use her thumb to show if she was okay or not. Mostly she lied and gave him a thumbs up. She didn't seem to want to make him worry. Did her body know something she didn't?

It was decided yesterday that she had amnesia. She couldn't answer any of the questions about how she ended up in the hospital. She didn't know. So they decided it best to not freak her out while she was still healing.

She still couldn't move, and they wouldn't let her talk. She couldn't see what they had done to her besides that small glimpse at her arm that granted her tranquilizer serum. She didn't know what was going on, and only wished she could get answers.

_And I _will_ get answers._


	2. Chapter 2

**I don't own Fairy Tail. It all belongs to Hiro Mashima... **

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><p>Screaming Scarlet<p>

Chapter 2

She woke abruptly with a cold sweat. It had been four days now, but it felt like an eternity, laying in the hospital bed without being permitted to move. She had entirely too much time with her own thoughts. Her fear and curiosity towards what the doctors refused to tell her was making it hard not to scream, which was a useless idea since she couldn't even do that. Restrictions piled on top of restrictions, piled onto secrets. Everything set her on edge.

Glancing as far as she could, she noticed the crimson rays of early morning behind the drawn curtains. At least she wouldn't have to worry about going back to sleep, where only her sinister imagination awaited her. Her latest dream was slightly unclear, but she remembered the scariest bits. She was back at work, at the Bureau. Her desk was crowded with unsolved case files from many investigations gone awry. She didn't remember what went wrong exactly, but that it turned to be an utter failure.

Glancing at her watch, she realized it was almost midnight, and readied herself for home. _Always over working yourself, Erza_. She had this pit in her stomach; it being cold and dark, reminding her of her decline in success. She tried to brush away the feeling like she always did, but this time the feeling worsened. It felt as if it were swallowing her whole. The room grew dark, and in the darkness came creeping hands that pulled at her arms and legs. She tried to fight, but she couldn't move. She couldn't scream, couldn't breathe. It felt like an eternity before the darkness finally ripped her in half. It was slow, sending her spiraling down in an endless loop of pain. Silent screams contorted her body beyond it's limits, then she hit the ground, the color of scarlet surrounding her. It dripped slowly, like congealing blood. It suffocated her, covering her completely as she lay there lifelessly. She was helpless. Then she woke up.

Most of her dreams ended in blood. It was sinister how it happened, always suffocating her. But she had to forget it. It was pointless to worry about something such as a bad dream. At least she told herself this.

Thirty minutes passed and morning rounds began. Erza was met with at least ten doctors in lab coats, every few down their row possessing a tablet to report her daily improvements. She could tell when new recruits made it to her room, because their faces turned to match their coats. Apparently she was that scary looking, which seemed oddly amusing since she'd not seen herself.

"Good morning Erza. How are you feeling today?" A man towards the middle of the group spewed his routine speech. He was a tad too cheery for her taste. It seemed forced for the man with a crude smile. But to hide her feelings, she tried a smile and gave a thumbs up. Still a lie, and she could tell the doctors didn't believe any sign she gave. Not surprising since they knew more than her.

"That's good to hear. Now, on to the plan for today. Charles, would you please present Miss Erza's schedule." He gestured towards a spindly, spectacled young man. His reaction to being addressed showed in the whisper of pink across his cheeks.

Clearing his throat, Charles began: "This morning we'll begin speech therapy. It's only a precaution since you've recently undergone a tracheotomy. The apparatus doesn't compromise your speech at all, but-"

"Ahem. Charles." The man with his chilling smile glared at Charles. He had said something he shouldn't have.

Erza's eyes had been wide since she heard she even needed speech therapy, but the tracheotomy sent her overboard. Again, her heart monitor sped up. As she tried to understand Charles's words, said man was escorted away. This shocked her even more. _Is telling me about my condition really such a taboo concept?_ Sure, Erza was beyond shocked, but maybe if she'd known sooner, she wouldn't have reacted this way.

"Anyway, you'll be beginning therapy this morning. A specialist will be to your room in about an hour." And with that, the lab coats hurriedly left the room, the head doctor smiling continuously as they left.

A nurse was by her side checking her monitor, continuously asking if she were alright, but all Erza could do was stare at the ceiling. The woman lightly touched her arm, returning to her work. Just then, a light knock resonated from her door, and a man stepped in. She could tell who it was without being able to look, since he always brought a cup of coffee along. The aroma was the only thing she liked about the beverage.

"Good morning, Jellal." The nurse nodded to him.

"Good morning, Sybil. How is she today?" His voice was polite, but the hint of concern was surprising to Erza's ears.

"She's awake, why don't you ask her?" Sybil smiled, patted him on the shoulder, and then left the room.

Footsteps made their way to her side, and the man with blue hair was before her eyes. She could tell he saw the shock in her eyes, and as he made his way to the old chair he seemed to claim every morning, he took a hold of her hand.

"I heard they told you about your trach. It's okay, you'll still be able to talk with it." Erza looked into his brown eyes, wondering how this stranger to her could be so caring. Without realizing it, a tear rolled down her cheek. Before she knew it, Jellal lightly moved his thumb across her cheek, wiping away her stray tear. " Erza, I know this is tough. If you want, I can stay for therapy." He could read her so well. It was as if he knew her better than she did. She smiled then, letting him know she appreciated it.

* * *

><p>Speech Therapy seemed pointless. She could pronounce things with crystal clarity, and the first question that came out of her mouth was "What happened to me?" It wasn't surprising, since everyone knew she had been wondering. Jellal showed her a sympathetic look, and Porlyusica, the therapist, looked away, a scowl hidden behind her pink locks.<p>

"I don't have clearance to say, and neither does lover boy." She glared back at the two of them. In response to her shocking words, they both had clear shades of pink peppered across their faces.

"Anyway," Porlyusica made to stand. "I had better be going. I've got other patients with actual speech problems." And with that, Porlyusica left Erza's room, not bothering to close the door gracefully behind her. The two were left in their own blushing mess.

"Jellal," Erza croaked, her face still burning from Porlyusica's words. "Am I really not allowed to know?" Despite having not talking in a number of days, the cause of hoarseness in Erza's throat was more from welling emotions than anything.

A sigh escaped the mans lips before the same sympathetic smile shown on his lips. "I'm afraid the doctors won't let anyone discuss it, Erza. I do, however, know that each day will bring more progress."

His words weren't surprising, but at the same time, cut at her mind. She wanted, _no, needed_ to know what was happening to her. She hadn't moved since she woke up, had no decent memories, especially of this man she had grown fond of. She wanted to know what memories they shared. She wanted to know everything.

* * *

><p>In the coming days, "progress" consisted of nothing more than her speech. She was wearing herself out thinking about what was really going on. On the seventh day, she snapped.<p>

Jellal had been in the hallway with one of the lab coats, discussing _something _obviously having to do with her. A nurse was checking her vitals, recording data in a tablet. She also asked questions frequently.

"Are you in any pain?" "Can you rate your pain on a scale of one to ten?" "Where is the pain?" Can you describe it to me?" "Would you like any medication?"

"What I would like is some _answers!"_ Erza found herself shouting. She didn't intend to scare the nurse, but the shock on her face told her that it had already been done. There was a foreign rage deep inside her, bursting to the surface faster than she could handle. "When will I get answers? I've been in this bed for at least a week. I... I don't know how long I've been here. There's a man here that seems to have known me, but I don't remember him, or what happened to me. Please, _please_ just tell me something!" She was breathing heavily, and sharp pains were streaking down every limb.

Just as she ceased her talking, a crash came from behind her head. The lights flickered, and just as her eyes went wide, the sound of screeching metal came from all around her. Her fists clenched from the pain. At the time she didn't realized she could move her hands, but that didn't stop the doctors in the hallway from noticing.

Footsteps clashed with the tile floor, assaulting her eardrums. There were white spots in her vision.

"Sybil, Sybil _sedate her._ Sedate her now!" Erza turned her head towards the voice, and as the man in the lab coat screamed at the nurse, she noticed a man with blue hair wide-eyed, and with a tear down his face. Then, just like the first day, everything went black.

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><p><strong>Heh, Happy New Year. Hopefully Mashima won't kill us with his incessant trolling... <strong>


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